Vacuum Vacboom?

[Hakaman]

I want to clean up around my work area, and was considering using a vacuum. There are spent primers, powder that has been spilled(not a great volume, but enough to want to clean up), and the usual build up of debris. My question is this: Is powder dangerous when vacuumed up with an electric vacuum? Is it better to just sweep up?
Haka

[blue68f100]

It use to be a NO NO. But today shop vacs are built so if your using a good filter the chances for the powder to get to the motor is nil. If you think about most wood shops with all of the fine dust is more flammable than gun powder. Now if you dropped an open container of powder and spilled several oz, I would use a waste pan to pick it up. Small quantity of gunpowder is no problem. I vacuum up gun powder spills from time to time. I use a shop vac with a HEPA filter to keep from putting the dust back in the air. Spent primer are not a issue here. I have a jar on the end of the spent primer tube, to catch them. Primers present more of a health hazard than gun powder. There is lead residue in primers.

They do make special shop vac for working in highly explosive environments. Unless you just need a $3000+ shop vac. I had one where I worked at. It was safe to vacuum up flammable liquids.

[Baldy]

I would have no worry about using a vac to pick up a mess. I use a small Vac around my bench all the time.

[Bullseye]

As long as you don't have any unspent primers laying around you should be all right. Find a live primer with the vacuum and you may be in for a surprise.

R,
Bullseye

[Jack D]

Or you could do as I did. Just do a little welding project near the spill. Powder will disappear.

[Coach1]

Thought I would fill the dirth of Posts with a related story.. well sort of related.

Early in my career I had an assignment to design a "safe" way to vacuum out printers that returned to the factory off leases as part of the refurb process. These are free standing, commercial / business grade machines. The vacuums (Sears canister vacs at the time) were used to suck up the loose printer toner dust as step 1 in the refurb process after the covers were removed.

What prompted the engineering assignment for a safer method was that - fairly routinely- the accumulating toner dust in the vacs would spontaneously (with a moderate BANG ) explode. No damage was done but a black streak was projected up the adjacent wall about 10 feet each time it happened. The management team asked the facilities engineering team to design a better way - which I did. But it was fun for the time that the vacs would go POW!.

[bigfatdave]

What prompted the engineering assignment for a safer method was that - fairly routinely- the accumulating toner dust in the vacs would spontaneously (with a moderate BANG ) explode. No damage was done but a black streak was projected up the adjacent wall about 10 feet each time it happened. The management team asked the facilities engineering team to design a better way - which I did. But it was fun for the time that the vacs would go POW!.

Paint the wall black?

Problem solved once and for all!

[blue68f100]

Dealing with carbon powder YHEA, I can see the fun in that.

[greener]

A small amount of powder is probably, maybe no problem. However, vac's have the means of creating a static discharge and a dust explosion, which is probably what coach1 saw. Flower, finely dispersed in the air is a heck of an explosive. Back in the late 70's a grain silo in New Orleans had a dust explosion during off-loading a barge. Flattened the silos and rattled windows for 7-10 miles.

I like the idea of welding near the powder. it's probably disperse enough that the flames won't get too high.

[Coach1]

BFD. That is a good - funny - response. But if you give an engineer a problem.. Do not be surprised if the solution requires some engineering work.

We had to paint the wall anyway.. same old beige as everywhere else.

I spent a few years in the Midwest. The grain silo exposure was a concern every harvest season.

[Hakaman]

Over the last year, I dropped one unspent primer on the floor that I couldn't find. Where it is I don't know. Maybe I'll just sweep instead of vac'g.
Haka

[bearandoldman]

Over the last year, I dropped one unspent primer on the floor that I couldn't find. Where it is I don't know. Maybe I'll just sweep instead of vac'g.
Haka

If I see a mushroom cloud off to the South I will =know you found it, eh?

[greener]

Just beat the floor with a hammer before vacuuming so you won't have to worry about a static electricity igniting the primer in the hose.

Of course a thrifty conservationist would want to recycle the powder and primers by sweeping them up and reusing them.

[Hakaman]

If I see a mushroom cloud off to the South I will =know you found it, eh?

Just beat the floor with a hammer before vacuuming so you won't have to worry about a static electricity igniting the primer in the hose.

Of course a thrifty conservationist would want to recycle the powder and primers by sweeping them up and reusing them.

The mushroom cloud would probably be the city of Pontiac going up in flames. They are broke and in big financial trouble.

With all the powder on the floor, I'm not sure I feel too comfy ignited the primer with a hammer. Just the same, thanks for the advice.
Haka

[TH3180]

Once upon a time I was in the basement getting ready to hand prime 9mm. I was still doing each part of reloading in batches because I was using a single stage press. I dumped the primers into the round RCBS tray. Right as I did that my wife came around the corner and asked me to use a utility knife to open a package for her. It was one of those hard plastic deals that a scissors has trouble with. As I am opening the package my hand slips and I put a good cut right down the palm of my hand. In doing so I spilled the try of 100 primers on the carpet I had by my bench. I tried super glue but the cut wouldn’t stay closed. I drove to the ER to get stitched up. While there my wife who felt bad went down stairs to clean up the mess I made, She started to pick up primers (not really knowing what they were) and decided it would be much easier with the vacuum from upstairs. She got almost all the primers sucked up and BANG. Needless to say she got a new vacuum and I still giggle about it, even as I type this.